On Thursday night, former President Donald Trump hosted an exclusive dinner at his Virginia golf club – not for campaign donors or political allies, but for the top 220 holders of his memecoin, $TRUMP. The event, equal parts spectacle and scandal, capped a three-week leaderboard contest that saw over $394 million poured into the token.
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The Price of a Seat
Access to the gala was earned – not bought outright – through time-weighted average holdings of $TRUMP. The minimum cost to qualify was 4196 tokens – worth likely between $40,000 and $60,000 depending on when the tokens were acquired. The top 25 wallets received additional perks: a VIP cocktail reception and, originally, the promise of a White House tour (which never materialized). According to Bloomberg, 19 of the 25 biggest wallets are based outside the U.S.
Notable attendees included Tron founder Justin Sun, BitMart CEO Sheldon Xia, and Magic Eden’s Jack Lu. Sun, the highest-ranked wallet holder, was rawarded a Trump-branded golden watch.
A Night of Luxury – and Protest
Dinner was a full-course affair: organic field greens, filet mignon, halibut, and lava cake. Guests received commemorative hats and plaques under banners reading “Fight Fight Fight”.
Outside, however, around 100 protestors gathered with signs such as “Democracy Is Not for Sale” and “Crypto Corruption”. Critics, including Senators Elizabeth Warren, Chris Murphy, and Richard Blumenthal, denounced the event as a “crypto pay-to-play scandal.”
Sen. Warren called it “an orgy of corruption”, alleging that anonymous foreign investors were buying access to U.S. policy – a charge echoed by Rep. Maxine Waters, who introduced new legislation targeting presidential involvement in digital assets.
Sell-Off and Market Fallout
While $TRUMP briefly surged to $15.75 leading into the event, the aftermath revealed a more cynical reality. Data shows that nearly half of the 220 invitees had sold their tokens before or shortly after the dinner. The token price dropped below $14 over the last hours.
What’s Next?
While Trump’s team insists the dinner was a private affair, the political, legal, and financial implications are anything but. From claims of foreign influence to market manipulation concerns, this unprecedented merger of crypto and politics may change how digital assets are regulated – and perceived – in the U.S.
Whether this was the first of many such events, or a one-time controversy, remains to be seen.
Read also: What the GENIUS Act Means for Stablecoin Regulation
